New Zealand Embassy Berlin, Germany

Taxes and Social Security in New Zealand

The New Zealand tax system is fundamentally different from that in Germany. Generally speaking, social security is financed by taxes and not by individual premiums. Employees are not required to pay regular premiums to social security. However, many New Zealanders decide to take out an additional health insurance policy. Some New Zealand employers will pay a proportion of the private health insurance of their employees.

The same applies to the pension scheme. Upon reaching the age of retirement, a standard fixed amount is paid by the State. Hence, as a rule, employees take out private superannuation policies, to which some employers contribute.